Stop Letting Your Brain Be Your Drama Queen

Start 2026 with a steadier compass, not a louder calendar. When the world feels heavy and noisy, we dig into how leaders can stay grounded by pairing a real growth mindset with practical, intentional choices that cut through uncertainty. Instead of sugarcoating hardship, we redefine growth mindset as curiosity over judgment—asking what can be learned, where grace belongs, and how to move forward when confidence wobbles.

We talk candidly about the hidden cost of negativity and disengagement. Burnout rarely shows up as flames; it shows up as numbness, cynicism, and reactive decisions. From missed opportunities to rooms we weren’t invited into, we name the moments that push us from curiosity into self‑protection and share how to spot that shift before it hardens into a fixed identity. You’ll hear why openness beats having all the answers, and how leaders who listen, question, and reflect create psychological safety and better decisions.

Then we get practical. Intentional leadership isn’t a grand plan—it’s the small, repeatable behaviors that shape culture: pausing before you respond, preparing for hard conversations, holding people kindly to high standards, and protecting capacity through clear boundaries. We introduce three grounding questions to regain agency: what’s within my control, what story am I telling myself, and what’s the most intentional next step. These tools help you challenge worst‑case thinking, focus your energy, and build momentum without waiting for perfect conditions.

If you’re ready to trade autopilot for purpose, hit play and take the next right step with us. Share this episode with someone who needs a reset, and leave a five‑star review so more leaders can choose growth this year.

Follow us on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/rhondajhale/ and https://www.linkedin.com/in/katieervin/

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www.katieervin.com

Measure what matters. Lead with purpose. Take the LEADERs Catalyst Index: https://katieervin.com/catalyst-score/

Theme music by Emma Jo https://emmajo.rocks/

Chapters

• 0:00 New Year, Heavy Season Context
• 1:48 Redefining Growth Mindset
• 4:14 The Cost Of Negativity And Disengagement
• 5:59 From Curiosity To Self‑Protection
• 7:21 Intentional Leadership In Small Moments
• 9:52 Boundaries, Capacity, And Saying No
• 11:53 Three Grounding Questions For 2026

Transcript

Dr. Katie: 0:33

And welcome back to the Path to Leadership. I am Dr. Katie Irvin. We are solo today. Unfortunately, Rhonda is not here with us today. Uh, but as we were preparing for our podcast topic for today, we wanted conversations into this. So I'm really excited to hear with you all today are some conversations. Before I jump into that, welcome back. It is 2026. Hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and are ready to go. But I'm really hoping that this podcast today will really jump start you into that really strong 2026 start. We talked about it leading up to the end of the year, and now we're here, and now it's time. And so we really want to talk about today growth mindset and really intentional leadership in uncertain times. It's it's one of those things right now, it it we're just in such a heavy season. No matter where we are, what side we're on, what's happening, there's just so much going on in the world today. There's a lot of negativity, there's a lot of noise, and just constant change. And whether you're leading a team, an organization, a family, or just leading yourself, it can be really exhausting with everything going on. And so I want to really talk about that today and how we move past this. Uh, this episode is not pretending that everything's fine, it's not about being optimistic for the sake of optimism. It's about how we really stay grounded, intentional, and growth focused when everything around us just feels uncertain. Because leadership doesn't pause because things are hard. We got to keep going. And so today I want to talk to you about these things that really matter to me and my work, and I know to Rhonda and her work. That is growth mindset and intentionality and really how these work together help us lead well in moments like this, in these hard times, in these times where we may be disengaged or burnout. There's just so much. So I want to talk about that today, really. Uh, but we've got to start with the growth mindset because we're hearing that more and more and more, which is great. Uh, but I want to really reframe it because I think sometimes it's so oversimplified. We think it's choose a good attitude or let it run off your shoulders and don't worry about it. But it's really more than just positive thinking. It's not about ignoring reality, it's not about forced optimism when you're tired, when you're frustrated, and when you're burned out. Real growth mindset is choosing curiosity over judgment. It's saying things like, what can I learn from this? What's the teaching moments? How can I grow through this instead of shutting down? And really the honest part about this is growth mindset is really harder in adults than it is in our younger years. We've been rewarded through the years for having answers, for being confident, for being the experts in the room. So when something challenges that, our instincts really step in to protect us. And I know that there were times in my career journey where staying in a fixed mindset felt safer. But really, what it did was it called me back from opportunities. I was afraid to admit when I didn't know. That felt very risky. It felt like I wasn't in a safe space. But really, looking back, that that mindset really cost me some growth. Growth mindset doesn't mean that you're confident, it means that you're open. And openness is really this critical leadership skill that we have as we move forward. And while we talk about these topics, we've got to talk about the cost of negativity and disengagement because it's real. It happens. All of my research that I have done is on workplace motivation, and that all ties into engagement at work, happiness at work, productivity at work. And when we're living in a fixed mindset, when we're living in negativity, it really can bog us down because when negativity hangs around too long, people don't always look burnt out in dramatic ways. They're disengaged, they're numb, they're cynical, they're reactive. They they stop caring so deeply because caring feels exhausting. They start pulling away for self-preservation. And for leaders, that is so dangerous because disengaged leaders don't ask good questions, they also don't listen well, they react instead of responding, and they lead from protection instead of purpose. They've got this bubble around them that they're really trying to protect themselves and those around you. So here's a question I want you to sit with for a bit is where have I shifted from curiosity to self-protection? We all have those moments in our career, in our journeys, where we're really curious and excited to learn, and then we get into this shell of self-protection. What has happened that has caused that for you? And there's a lot of big T, little T trauma that happens in the workplace. Maybe we get passed over for an opportunity. Maybe we don't get asked in a room where our advice would be highly beneficial. There's a lot of reasons why our brain just goes into this self-preservation mode. And this shift usually happens pretty quickly. And the longer it goes unnoticed, the harder it is to course correct. Once we've been living in a fixed mindset, it's really hard to pull ourselves out of this. And just as really being intentional matters so much because in intentional leadership, we're choosing how we show up. Intentional leadership is doing things on purpose and not on autopilot. Autopilot is tempting when we're tired, when everything's uncertain, when we're overwhelmed. Leaders don't drift into growth, they choose it. And so while we can fall into disengagement, we have to actively choose growth. We have to actually be really working hard on that. It's not going to just pop up if we haven't done the work. And intentional leadership shows up in small moments, pausing before responding instead of reacting. I talk about emotional intelligence all the time. This is a piece of emotional intelligence. Preparing for hard conversations instead of avoiding it. Again, I stuck about this all the time. My program, don't be nice, be kind. And it's all about this stuff. It's holding people accountable. It's about holding people accountable. It's about having those kind conversations. It's about helping people grow by holding them to high standards. Also, we see it intentional leadership show up in setting boundaries instead of saying yes out of guilt. I love helping people find the joy in saying no. It doesn't mean that you don't care. It doesn't mean that it's not important, but you only, as leaders, have so much capacity in your day. And when we say yes to everything, it gets in the way of the work that we need to do. And so we want to make sure that intentionality doesn't require us to do this big, massive plan. It really requires that awareness and most importantly, that choice that once we're aware of it, that we really, really, really choose that growth. You don't control the world around you, but you do control how you show up, how you respond, and how you let it impact you is really important. How do we start off 2026 with a strong start? And so here's some grounding questions that I really want you to think about as we look towards 2026. I really want you to think about this. These are complicated, they're just really grounding questions. And so, question one, what's actually within my control right now? I talk about this all the time. Uncertainty really pulls our focus to everything we can't control. This question brings you back to agency. It gives you that growth mindset, that focus on what you can control. You may not be out of control, but you control your response. And so I really want you to think about that because we may not be completely out of control, but if something doesn't go the way we want or doesn't happen, or we're not involved, we can start getting into this out of control moment. And so you really want to think about that because you want to really be able to control your thoughts and your emotions, um, your preparation and your energy around the topic as well. Question number two what story am I telling myself about the situation? Most stress doesn't come from facts, it comes from the stories we create in our head. Uh, are we assuming intent? Are we jumping to worst case scenario? Are we labeling ourselves or others? You don't have to believe everything you think. Our brain is made to keep us alive and unhappy. So it will start panicking, it will get into this fixed mindset, it will start filling in the uncertainty. And that's where we really have to choose that that growth, that growth mindset. The where are the opportunities? Where can I give people grace? What can I do there? And then the final question I want you to think about is what is the most intentional next step you can take? Not the perfect step, not the big shiny one, not the big dramatic leap, the next right step. When we're talking about growth mindset, it's really about momentum. And that really comes from movement. It comes from making progress and getting things done. And so we want to just start moving in those areas to really find success there. So I want you to really think about as we wrap up, are there times where you have more of a fixed mindset than a growth mindset? We all do. Spoiler alert, we all do. And that comes from a lot of different things. Personally, are you feeling up to it? Are you feeling engaged? Are you well rested? Do you have psychological safety? All of those kinds of things there. And then also paying attention to what your brain is softly saying or loudly screaming at you when you are in a moment of fixed mindset. And so understanding why you might be feeling a certain way or why you might be hesitating. Also doing some reflection back on, as I mentioned, when it started, because oftentimes you can find that anchor that is holding you back that you can cut off. So remember, you don't need certainty to lead well, but you do need intention. Everything's not going to be perfect all the time. Growth mindset keeps you learning and intentionality keeps you grounded. Leadership isn't about having everything figured out. It is really not. It's about choosing how you show up, especially when things are uncertain. And quite frankly, your team needs you to have this growth mindset. Your organization needs a growth mindset. Your peers need a growth mindset. We will continue to be in darkness. We will continue to be in negativity if we don't choose growth, if we don't do some of that really important work. As you head into this week, I'll leave you with this reflection, this little piece of homework that I want you to do. What is the one intentional choice I can make to lead myself better? As leaders, especially people leaders, we got to do work on ourselves to help others grow and thrive and to find success. We want to really pay attention to that. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm sad that Rhonda couldn't be here with us today. She will be back next week, I promise. And we will dig deeper into all of these important topics. I'm really thrilled for 2026. For me, I'm very optimistic that it's going to be a great year. And the reason I'm optimistic is that I have it really laid out intentionally of how I'm going to move forward and how I'm going to grow. And so having that framework, doing that work, gives me the confidence to know that I'm going to be able to be successful. I ask you as always, if this podcast resonates with you, please share it with someone who could also use a reset. Please feel free to go in and rate the podcast. Five stars really helps us grow and move the podcast forward. I just really appreciate you and the work you're doing. Thank you so much for being here. And as always, keep choosing growth even when it's uncomfortable. Talk to you next week on the Path to Leadership. Bye, everyone.